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Suddenly, a name flashed through Old Shao's mind, and he finally understood whose name he had forgotten. As Old Shao connected this person's name to the clues, everything began to align. However, he was reluctant to accept this fact because, in his view, that person could never do such a thing.
"Police," Jiang He murmured suddenly. "I..."
Before Jiang He could finish, Old Shao interrupted, "Yes, regarding Lu Zhengye's disappearance, we will continue our investigation. If we have any news, we will inform you. Of course, if you hear anything about Lu Zhengye, please call us. I'll leave my phone number."
Lu Father diligently wrote down the number in his contact list.
"Alright, then we'll be on our way," Shao the Elder said. "By the way, do you have the phone number of Lu Zhengye's friend? If you do, please let us know."
Lu Father thought for a moment and then provided a number. "He was the closest friend of Lu Zhengye; they grew up together. He lives in the last house of the row behind us. He might not be home right now, or I could go ask him for you."
"No need," Shao the Elder replied. "We'll go ourselves; you can take your time eating."
Lu's Mother grabbed Old Shao's sleeve and said, "Officer, please make sure to bring my son back. His nature is truly not bad; he was just led astray by others."
Even after several people had walked out the door, Lu's Mother's murmurs could still be heard from behind.
Jiang He looked at Old Shao, ready to voice his suspicions. But Old Shao gently pulled Jiang He back and said, "What I can think of, you must have thought of too. So let's hold off for now; once we get back, we can make specific arrangements, alright?"
Jiang He nodded in agreement.
"What are you two talking about?" Xu Yiman turned her head to ask. "Where are we going next? Back home? Or to Lu Zhengye's family?"
"Since we're already here, there's no need to make an extra trip," Shao the Elder replied. "Some things can't be discussed with our parents but can be shared with our friends. I believe Lu Zhengye's friend must know something."
With that, Old Shao led the group to Lu Zhengye's friend's house. According to Lu Father's contact list, this person was named Mao Dafang.
After knocking on the door, a man came out shortly after and asked, "Who is it?"
Old Shao took out his badge and said to the man, "Police, here to investigate some matters. Who is Lu Zhengye's friend Mao Dafang?"
"Another issue with Lu Zhengye!" The man shook his head in annoyance and said, "Come in; I'm Mao Dafang's father. He's still sleeping inside. I don't know how he got involved with a rapist; it's embarrassing for us. My son isn't even married yet."
The man shouted grumpily, "Mao Dafang! Wake up; the police are here to ask you something."
The man continued to kick the door frame a few more times.
After a moment of hesitation, a man in his thirties appeared at the doorway. Despite it being autumn, he was bare-chested, and judging by the excess fat on his body, he must have weighed over two hundred pounds.
"What’s going on?" Mao Dafang asked.
"Do you know that Lu Zhengye is missing?" Yuan Jun replied.
"Sigh." Mao Dafang let out a breath. "Come in, come in. Ask whatever you want; I’ll spill everything today."
With that, several people stepped into Mao Dafang's room.
The place was a complete mess, with trash scattered everywhere. There was a table by the bedside, on which sat a laptop that was buzzing away. The group could barely find a spot to stand.
"What did Lu Zhengye say to you before he went missing?" Old Shao coughed twice and asked.
Mao Dafang lay back on the bed and said, "He and I have had too many conversations. I remember he rushed over to my house less than a month after he got out of prison. My dad disapproved of him because he was a rapist and didn’t earn money like I do through gaming livestreams. He thought Lu Zhengye was just a good-for-nothing, so he forbade him from coming over. But Lu still came over every now and then."
"Who told me to be his true friend? Despite having many friends in the past, when it came down to it, wasn’t I the one there for him?" Mao Dafang patted his belly, causing the fat to jiggle. "Anyway, during that time, he told me he felt this strange sensation, as if something was watching him."
"What was watching him?" Old Shao asked.
Mao Dafang chuckled and said, "That would be me. I just felt that since he had just gotten out of prison, he might be experiencing some paranoia. You know what paranoia is, right? It’s a rather mysterious condition where the patient..."
Old Shao waved his hand to interrupt him: "No need to explain; we’re professionals here."
"Oh." Mao Dafang continued, "I comforted him not to be so suspicious and to go find a proper job. Look at me; I'm only thirty years old and already doing well with a monthly salary of over three thousand. What about him? He has no skills at all. He listened to my advice and decided to look for work outside."
"Did you suggest he find a job?" Old Shao asked.
"Yeah," Mao Dafang replied. "Who else could it be? I advised him to get a stable job instead of mingling with society; there’s nothing good about that. But in the end, he kept getting rejected. Then again, I had originally wanted him to join me in livestreaming games, but he wasn’t good at it either."
With that, Mao Dafang shook his head: "But that's not entirely his fault; after all these years, he didn’t even know what a smartphone was. How could he possibly play new games well or join me in playing PUBG?"
"Focus," Old Shao said helplessly.
Mao Dafang nodded. "Later, he couldn't find a job, but his paranoia grew stronger. He always felt like someone was following him. Then he started receiving strange calls on his phone, and only a few of his closest friends knew his number."
"Those were just scam calls; you shouldn't pay them any mind." Mao Dafang sat up, lightly touching the keyboard. "But he kept repeating a few phrases during those calls—words like 'cold' and 'revenge.' Sometimes he let me listen, but there was never any sound when I did."
"Revenge?" Jiang He asked. "What revenge?"
"I asked him the same thing," Mao Dafang replied. "I questioned him about what revenge he was talking about, but Lu Zhengye wouldn't say. He claimed that everything from ten years ago was in the past—whether he was wronged or not, he'd served his time in prison. What good would revenge do now? He was acting a bit paranoid during that time, and I couldn't understand what he was going through."
Jiang He looked at Old Shao. "It could be the Criminal Consultant calling."
Old Shao nodded.
Previously, Lu Zhengye's parents had received calls too. At first, Lu Zhengye didn't respond, but later he did. Was it related to this revenge business?
"Is the Criminal Consultant forcing others to seek revenge?" Xu Yiman asked. "Does that align with his three principles?"
Old Shao rubbed his temples. "Let's not get into that right now. Mao Dafang, continue."
Mao Dafang nodded. "About a week before he went missing, his feelings of paranoia intensified. The calls kept coming in more frequently; he was almost afraid to answer his phone. Each time he angrily rejected the calls, they would just keep coming back."
"He was on the brink of a breakdown," Mao Dafang said, his hand constantly rubbing the mouse. "I suggested he pretend to agree to whatever they wanted and see what would happen. After all, it's just talking; if it feels wrong, he doesn't have to follow through—words aren't illegal."
"And then?" Jiang He asked.
"Things improved a bit after that," Mao Dafang said. "The calls stopped for a while, but then suddenly one came through again, and he felt something was off. He came to me asking what to do, and I told him if it was too much to bear, he should buy a train ticket and leave for a year."
Old Shao frowned. "So you were the reason Lu Zhengye went missing?"
Mao Dafang shook his head and spat on the ground. "How could I be responsible for his disappearance? I was trying to help him! He was acting all mysterious—someone was following him, and there were those strange calls; it felt like they were everywhere, and he was terrified."
"As friends, how could we not help him?" Mao Dafang pulled out his phone. "I quietly booked him a train ticket; he could go to Yuzhou City and then take another train somewhere else without telling anyone—not even me—so no one would know where he was. After a year or so, he'd come back; wouldn't that work?"
Mao Dafang pulled out his phone, and everyone looked over to see a train ticket from Dragon City to Yuzhou City.
The time displayed was eighty-eight minutes ago.
Mao Dafang smiled and said, "They are all looking for Lu Zhengye, but they never thought that Lu Zhengye just ran off on his own. Now, who knows where Lu Zhengye is? I can't even get in touch with him. Originally, Lu Zhengye had just been released from prison and didn't want to leave, but then he received a call from a police officer and immediately agreed with my idea."
"A call from a police officer?" Old Shao asked.
Mao Dafang chuckled, "Who knows what kind of madness he was thinking? He just got out of prison and felt like someone was going to arrest him again. He told me himself that he received a call from a police officer. It seemed like the officer was questioning him about something or maybe accusing him of doing things he didn't actually do."
"In any case," Mao Dafang opened a game called PUBG and continued, "he was afraid that what happened ten years ago would happen again, so he ran off. Now, I have no idea where he went."
Old Shao's hands trembled slightly as he looked at Mao Dafang and said, "Do you know that everyone is looking for Lu Zhengye?"
Mao Dafang shrugged, "Yeah, his family is almost going crazy, and the police have called asking about him. I didn't tell them anything. But you know, I feel like it's pointless to keep this secret to myself. Anyway, you guys can't find him now, so it doesn't matter to me."
"Damn it," Old Shao grabbed his laptop and slammed it onto the ground angrily. "If you had revealed this eighty-eight minutes ago, none of this would have happened."
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